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Jon Grinspan ’06 has won the prestigious 2025 Francis Parkman Prize for his latest book, Wide Awake: The Forgotten Force That Elected Lincoln and Spurred the Civil War. The book previously won the Lincoln Forum Book Prize and was a finalist for the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize.
Awarded annually by the Society of American Historians, the Francis Parkman Prize recognizes a nonfiction work of history on an American theme that is distinguished by its literary merit. Describing Wide Awake as a “vivid and beautifully written study,” the Society praised Grinspan’s work as “the best of today’s historical writing.”
A curator of political and military history at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, Grinspan is the author of two additional books and is a frequent contributor to The New York Times. His work focuses on the deep history of American democracy and its relevance to contemporary politics. From political conventions to protests and riots, Grinspan’s research takes him to the heart of America’s political struggles, where he gathers materials to help future generations understand 21st-century democracy.
Grinspan returned to campus in October 2024 to participate in the College’s yearlong Polarization: Impacts + Solutions series, engaging in a conversation with President Cristle Collins Judd that explored lessons from our nation’s history that resonate in today’s fractured political landscape. Watch now